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US inflation 0.3 per cent in October (Roundup)
Nov 18, 2009, 13:04 GMT
Washington - The US inflation rate was 0.3 per cent in October compared to the previous month, according to the Labour Department Wednesday.
The higher-than-expected increase was fuelled by gains in car sales and energy prices. Consumer prices rose 0.2 per cent in the month of September and have fallen 0.2 per cent in the last year amid a deep recession.
Excluding more volatile food and energy prices, the inflation rate was 0.2 per cent in October and has climbed 1.7 per cent in the past 12 months.
The low rate continues to give the US Federal Reserve the freedom to keep interest rates at record lows as the economy begins a slow recovery.
Also Wednesday, new housing construction unexpectedly plunged 11 per cent in October, according to figures from the Commerce Department. That brings US housing starts down to an annual rate of 529,000, the lowest since April.
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said Monday that the world's largest economy has embarked on a modest recovery that would warrant exceptionally low interest rates for an 'extended period.' He warned of economic 'headwinds' still in the future.
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